Indian Military

Class overview
Name:	Vela class
Operators:	Indian Navy
In commission:	1973
Planned:	4
Completed:	4
Retired:	2
General characteristics
Type:	Submarine
Displacement:	1,952 t (1,921 long tons) surfaced 2,475 t (2,436 long tons) submerged
Length:	91.3 m (299 ft 6 in)
Beam:	7.5 m (24 ft 7 in)
Draught:	6 m (19 ft 8 in)
Speed:	16 knots (30 km/h; 18 mph) surfaced 15 knots (28 km/h; 17 mph) submerged
Range:	20,000 mi (32,000 km) at 8 kn (15 km/h; 9.2 mph) surfaced 380 mi (610 km) at 10 kn (19 km/h; 12 mph) submerged
Test depth:	250 m (820 ft)
Complement:	75 (incl 8 officers)
Armament:	• 10 533mm torpedo tubes with 22 SET-65E/SAET-60 torpedoes 44 mines in lieu of torpedoes
Radar	Surface; One MRP-25 (NATO: Snoop Tray) radar at I-band frequency.
Sonar	One Hercules bow mounted sonar, passive search & attack with medium frequency. One Fenik sonar, passive search & attack.
Propulsion	Has three Type 37-D diesel electric generator sets with 6000 hp. Also has 3 motors which give 5400 hp. Has 3 shafts and 1 auxiliary motor with 140 hp.

Vela class submarines of the Indian Navy were variants of the Soviet Foxtrot class submarines.
The last Vela Class will decommission in 2011.

The Foxtrot class was the NATO reporting name of a class of diesel-electric patrol submarines that were built in the Soviet Union. The Soviet designation of this class was Project 641.

The Foxtrot class was designed to replace the earlier Zulu class, which suffered from structural weaknesses and harmonic vibration problems that limited its operational depth and submerged speed. The first Foxtrot was laid down in 1957 and commissioned in 1958 and the last was completed in 1983. A total of 58 were built for the Soviet Navy at the Sudomekh division of the Admiralty Shipyard (now Admiralty Wharves), St. Petersburg. 8 were built for the Indian Navy. Additional hulls were built for other countries.

The Foxtrot class was comparable in performance and armament to most contemporary designs. 

INS Vela and INS Vagli are part of the 8th Submarine Squadron based at Vishakapatnam. A media report (The Hindu), dated 17 December 2006, stated that INS Vagli successfully completed her diving trials in late 2006, after a medium refit at the Hindustan Shipyard Limited at Vishakapatnam. The refit involved hull refurbishment and installation of main & auxiliary machinery and systems. INS Vela is undergoing a refit, which likely began in 2005 and may not be completed. INS Vela took part in an ASW exercise with the Singapore Navy from 03 - 13 March 2003 and in a joint exercise with the Royal Navy from 17 - 20 April 2004.

The Karanj served as trials platform for the ATV command systems including the 'Rani' and 'Pachendriya' radar/sonar equipment. With her decommissioning on 01 August 2003, it is unsure which of the two remaining Foxtrot Class boats - if ever - will take over as the trials platform for the ATV's systems. The Kursura has been converted into a submarine museum in Visakhapatnam. The conning tower of the Kalvari can also be seen in Vizag.

 

Ships of the class

Name	Pennant	Commissioned	Decommissioned	Status	Pennant
INS Vela	S40	31 August 1973	2010	8th submarine squadron based in vishakapatnam
INS Vagir	S41	03 November 1973	07 June 2001	Decommissioned
INS Vagli	S42	10 August 1974	2011	8th submarine squadron based in vishakapatnam
INS Vagsheer	S43	26 December 1974	30 April 1997	Decommissioned

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